Today's Current Affairs-19th September 2022

NATIONAL

Andaman and Nicobar Islands declared India’s first Swachh Sujal Pradesh

• Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has declared Andaman and Nicobar Islands as India’s first Swachh Sujal Pradesh. Speaking at a function in Port Blair, he handed over the certificate to Lieutenant Governor Admiral DK Joshi.
• Now, all villages of Andaman and Nicobar Island have been certified as Har Ghar Jal and verified as open defecation free – ODF plus. Mr Shekhawat congratulated all the islanders for this major achievement and highlighted people participation to complete this journey.
• He said, being remotely located from the mainland the achievement of the islands will prove to be a source of inspiration for rest States and Union Territories. This is the best gift for Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his birthday, he added.

About Andaman and Nicobar:

Districts: 3

Country: India

Districts: 3

Capital and largest city: Port Blair

1. Governor: Admiral D K Joshi

Maharashtra to set up NITI aayog-like institution

• Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday announced that an institution on the lines of Niti Aayog would be set up in the state for comprehensive data analysis and to make studied decisions on various sectors.
• Speaking to reporters here, Fadnavis said, "A delegation led by Chief Minster Eknath Shinde met the chief executive officer and other officials of the Niti Aayog. It was proposed that an institute of transformation on the lines of Niti Aayog would be set up to make studied decisions on various sectors. CM Shinde has given an in-principle nod to this suggestion."
• The topics discussed during the meeting between the chief minister and the NITI Aayog officials ranged from monetisation of assets, blockchain in agriculture, transportation taking to alternative fuel or EV policy, non-conventional energy, drone in healthcare and agriculture, among others, he said.
• The NITI Aayog has also carried an extensive study on similar issues and developed a tool, where inter-related data from various departments is collectively analysed for a better decision-making process.

About Maharashtra:

Governor: Bhagat Singh Koshyari

Chief Minister: Eknath Shinde

Capital: Mumbai

Social Justice Minister Virendra Kumar inaugurates 9 model DDRCs

• Union Social Justice and Empowerment minister Dr. Virendra Kumar virtually inaugurated 9 model District Disability Rehabilitation centres(DDRC). The minister was inaugurating 9 DDRCs which had been upgrading to model DDRCs.
• The nine DDRCs include: Badaun, Pilibhit, Barielly, Balaghat, Golaghat, Ahmedabad, Amravati, Kullu and Rampur.
• Spread across the country DDRCs have been providing effective rehabilitation services to the persons with disabilities(PwDs) for the last two decades. To improve their services the Department of Empowerment of Persons With Disability in the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment Government of India has conceptualized the model DDRC model.
• The Model DDRCs will act as milestone in providing quality rehabilitation services to PwDs while setting an example for newer DDRCs to come in future. They would also have services like hearing aids test lab, speech therapy room, visual therapy room, psychologist room, physiotherapist room, gait practice parallel bar and tele-medicine.

About Ministry of Social Justice :

Founder: Ministry of Minority Affairs

Officeholders: Virendra Kumar (Union Minister) 

BSF's first female camel riding squad ready to be deployed along India-Pakistan border in Rajasthan and Gujarat

• Border Security Force (BSF) first female camel riding squad will be deployed along the India-Pakistan border in Rajasthan & Gujarat. The squad will participate for the first time in the BSF Raising Day Parade on 1st December. This Squad will be the first of its kind in the world. Giving this information, DIG BSF Bikaner, Pushpendra Singh Rathore said that Intensive training was given to this squad at the Bikaner Regional Headquarters of BSF under the supervision of skilled trainers.
• The BSF is the only force in the country to have the Camel Contingents and the Camel Mounted Band. BSF, traditionally known as the ‘first line of defence, the Camel Contingents are used to keep a vigil in the vast expanse of the Thar Desert.
• The BSF is a central armed police force (CAPF) that functions under the Union government. It was raised in 1965 in the aftermath of the India-Pakistan war.

About Border Security Force:

Director General: Pankaj Kumar Singh

Founded: 1 December 1965

Headquarters: New Delhi, India

About Rajasthan:

Governor: Kalraj Mishra

Capital: Jaipur (Executive Branch)

Chief Minister: Ashok Gehlot

About Gujarat:

Capital: Gandhinagar

Governor: Acharya Devvrat

Chief Minister: Bhupendrabhai Patel

Tamil Nadu notifies Nanjarayan tank as bird sanctuary

• The Tamil Nadu government has notified the Nanjarayan tank in Tiruppur district as the 17th bird sanctuary of the State.
• In April, Minister for Forests K. Ramachandran said in the Assembly that the tank would be declared a bird sanctuary and ₹7.5 crore would be allotted for its development.
• On Monday, the Department of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change issued a government order, declaring the tank as the 17th bird sanctuary under the Wild Life (Protection) Act.
• The tank, locally called Sarkar Periyapalayam tank, lies at the junction of Tiruppur North and Uthukuli taluks, covering 125.86 hectares. The government has also released the proposed boundaries of the sanctuary.
• The tank is considered an abode of migratory bird species. Bar-headed goose, ruddy shelduck, northern shoveler and many other species native to Central Asia are expected to arrive at the tank by October.

About Tamil Nadu:

Governor: R. N. Ravi

Capital: Chennai

Chief Minister: M. K. Stalin

 SPORTS

Indian javelin thrower Devendra Jhajharia clinches silver medal in World Para Athletics Grand Prix in Morocco

• Indian javelin thrower Devendra Jhajharia has clinched a silver medal in the World Para Athletics Grand Prix, in Morocco. Paralympics gold medalist Devendra threw the javelin to a distance of 60.97 meter to capture the silver.
• Devendra is a three-time Paralympics medalist.

About world para athletics:

Next date: Fri, 17 May, 2024 – Sat, 25 May, 2024

Sport: Athletics

Founded: 1994

Bajrang punia wins bronze in 2022 world Wrestling championship

• Olympic bronze medallist Bajrang Punia beat Puerto Rico’s Sebastian Rivera by the skin of his teeth in a 65kg bronze medal match to claim his fourth medal in the World wrestling championships in Belgrade on Sunday.
• Bajrang, who picked up a head injury in the pre-quarterfinal bout and lost to American John Diakomihalis in the quarterfinals before getting back to medal contention on Saturday, rallied from 0-6 down to record an 11-9 victory. It was his third bronze medal other than a silver.
• After conceding six points inside 35 seconds, Bajrang fought back with a throw and a takedown to level the scores. Rivera regained the lead through another two-pointer in the first period and later extended it to 9-6.
• The never-say-die Bajrang, who wrestled with a bandaged head, closed the gap and overtook Rivera through two takedowns. An unsuccessful video challenge from the Puerto Rican for a move performed just after the last second gifted Bajrang another point.
• Earlier, Bajrang erased a 0-4 deficit to register a hard-fought 7-6 victory over Individual World Cup winner Vazgen Tevanyan of Armenia in the repechage round.

 APPOINTMENS & RESIGNATIONS

Climate Activist Vanessa Nakate Named UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador

• United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) appointed Vanessa Nakate, a 25¬-year¬-old climate activist from Uganda as the Goodwill Ambassador of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Her collaboration with the organisation and recognising her outstanding global advocacy for climate justice for current and future generations.
• Nakate began her activism in January 2019 with a protest with her siblings and cousins on the streets of Kampala, inspired by Greta Thunberg. She continued to protest every week, becoming a well-known face in a movement of young people “striking” for the climate around the world. In 2020 she came to further global prominence when she was cropped out of a news photo she appeared in alongside Thunberg and other white climate activists. Nakate’s response to the incident, in which she said the news outlet “didn’t just erase a photo, you erased a continent”, made international headlines.

About UNICEF:

Founded: 1946

Headquarters: New York City, USA

Director General: Catherine M. Russell

Membership: 192

 AWARDS & RECOGNITION

Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh presents 'INSPIRE' awards to 60 Start-Ups, financial support to over 53,000 students

• Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh has presented INSPIRE Awards to 60 startups along with financial support to 53,021 students, the Ministry of Science & Technology. The award is instituted by the Department of Science & Technology (DST), Government of India, and these innovators will be extended complete incubation support for their entrepreneurship journey.
• The annual INSPIRE Awards MANAK (Million Minds Augmenting National Aspiration and Knowledge) competition attracted an unprecedented 6.53 lakh ideas and innovations from all states and UTs of the country in 2020-21. The scheme achieved an unprecedented level of inclusivity by representing ideas and innovations of 702 districts (96%), including 123 out of 124 aspirational districts, 51% representation from girls, 84% participation from schools located in rural areas of the country, and 71% of schools run by State/UT Governments.
• Out of 6.53 lakh, a total of 53,021 students were identified for financial support of Rs 10,000 each so that they could develop prototypes of the ideas that they submitted for the scheme.
• They competed in District-Level Exhibition and Project Competitions (DLEPCs) and State-Level Exhibition and Project Competitions (SLEPCs).

About Ministry of Science & Technology:

Officeholder: Y. S. Chowdary (Minister of State)

Founded: May 1971

Headquarters: New Delhi

Jurisdiction: India

 BANKING AND ECONOMY

Adobe Strikes $20 billion Deal to Acquire Figma 

• Adobe acquires Figma: Adobe announced that it would acquire design software company Figma for roughly $20 billion in cash and equity. Adobe’s stock fell 17%, marking the worst decline since 2010. Dylan Field, co-founder and CEO of Figma, will remain in that position after the deal is completed. David Wadhwani, president of Adobe‘s digital media division, will be his immediate supervisor.
• Adobe is paying close to 50 times revenue at a time when cloud software sales multiples are sharply declining from their record highs established last year.

About Adobe:

Headquarters: San Jose, California, United States

Founded: December 1982, Mountain View, California, United States

CTO: Abhay Parasnis

Founders: Charles Geschke, John Warnock

President: David Wadhwani

CEO: Shantanu Narayen

About Figma:

Co-founder and CEO: Dylan Field

Initial release date: 27 September 2016

Platform: Web application, Mobile application